Jason Verrett aims to be defensive rookie of the year

Few players on the verge of reaching the top of their profession lack confidence or ambition. TCU cornerback Jason Verrett isn’t one of those few players.

He has plenty of confidence, and he has plenty of ambition.

“My goal is to be the rookie of the year,” Verrett told Thursday’s edition of Pro Football Talk on NBCSN. “The defensive rookie of the year. That’s just my goal to lead all the rookies defensively, pass deflections and interceptions. My goal is to be the best this year.”

Verrett also said he’s “hands down” the best cornerback in the 2014 draft.

“I mean I shut down a lot of elite receivers,” Verrett said. “You know Odell Beckham, Kenny Stills, Terrance Williams, Eric Ward. I shut down a lot of receivers and I led the nation in the last two years with 38 passes defended, 30 pass breakups, and 8 interceptions. So I feel like the film speaks more for itself than actually me telling you that I’m a ball hawker or that I tackle well because I feel like I’m showcasing all of that on the football field.”

Despite being a little on the short side (five-nine) at a time when teams are looking for bigger cornerbacks, Verrett is confident he’ll be taken somewhere between the 20th and 32nd picks in the draft.

He added that he’s recovering well from shoulder surgery that he underwent last month, and that he’ll be 100 percent in time for the 2014 season.